Weather Stained
by BellaMoody
Summary: she falls apart when he appears.


Standard disclaimers apply: i own neither Naruto or the song "elements" by a fine frenzy.

* * *

Darkness hung over, casting a shadow of silence over the normally bustling village. The gray sky had been relentlessly pouring it's misery for days now. Forcing all of the residences to hold out in their small homes. Some huddled close in front of a fireplace, others tucked away warmly in their individual rooms. All but one.

He'd been away up until a couple of weeks ago, and was now standing determinedly in front of an old teammate's house.

_***flashback***_

_**You show up like a hurricane**_

_His worn out body stumbled up to the gates where he was greeted by hostility from the guards._

"_State your business Uchiha!" one demanded. Both in fighting stance, as if preparing for any attempt on his part to cause conflict._

_**All hungry-eyed and weather stained**_

"_I'm home. Let me speak with the Hokage". He requested, frustrated from the relentlessly cold and damp weather._

_Before either one could secure the missing nin, a blur of orange tackled him, both of the figures tumbling on the wet ground._

"_TEME!"_

"_Dobe. Get off me."_

_Naruto quickly got up and offered his hand. As soon as Sasuke was on his two feet again he was met by a rapid fist to the left side of his face, sending him a few feet away, back slamming into a nearby tree, ending the hurdle of pain._

_Sasuke struggled to get up, wiping away the blood dripping from his busted lip._

"_That's for abandoning us Teme. For hurting Sakura." He growled._

_As Sasuke glanced up to glare at Naruto, his eyes were drawn to the said person standing quietly in the background next to his old sensei. He expected her to run up sobbing and fling her slender arms around his neck._

_**The clock forgets to tick and I the same….**_

_Instead she stood there, frozen and numb, eyes locked on his for what felt like forever, and then what she uttered caused a myriad of emotions to flicker across his face, before he settled on indifference._

"_Welcome home, Uchiha" she whispered. Then she turned to leave the rest of the team looking after her with concern._

_***end flashback***_

He hadn't seen her since then. Everyone from team 7 made visits to her house separately and on their own spare time, except for him, that was. Naruto visited her the first time after a few days of not seeing her, inviting her out to ramen. He was about to give in after sitting outside for hours begging her to come out and only silence being his answer, but she had suddenly opened the door, and the presence that greeted Naruto was not one of whom he'd known for years now. She stood there in a over sized t-shirt that she had probably been wearing for days, equally unclean shorts, messy hair, bags under her tear-stained eyes and what looked like to be a picture held tightly to her chest.

"Who is going?" she spoke so softly that Naruto almost missed it.

"Well Kakashi-sensei and Sai are on a mission. Yamato is busy. So it would just be you, Sasuke and I" He spoke hopefully.

"I'm sorry Naruto, but not today" and with that she shut the door quickly before he could protest. He sighed then disappointedly headed to the ramen stand to meet Sasuke.

On the Second day it had been Yamato with a request to spar, but there was no acknowledgment of his presence made by her. As he headed off to train, he glanced back, worry made visible in the creases of his face.

On the morning of the third day, Sai tried tempting her out with an offer to paint her portrait. The politely declining voice that carried through the door surprised him.

"Maybe some other day." He could hear her footsteps retreating, and knew that he couldn't coax her out either.

That afternoon, Kakashi stopped by briefly before heading out for another mission.

He jumped and landed skillfully on her balcony. He could see the outline of her body curled underneath the white covers through the slightly open sheer curtains. He tapped lightly and managed to grab her attention. Her body turned slightly and her eyes met his. Slowly she rolled over and sat up, hesitating at the edge of her bed before she got up and made her way to the balcony doors. Once open she was greeted by his worried laced voice.

"Just checking in before I head out." He stated.

She nodded slightly. "Thank you, but I'm fine."

"I would have never guessed by the way you've been hiding out." He added light heartedly.

He saw the corner of her lip twitch upward a little but only briefly before she returned to a blank expression.

"I A-M F-I-N-E." she emphasized. And with that she excused herself, shutting her doors and closing the curtains. Kakashi saw her silhouette fade. Sighing to himself, he disappeared in a *poof* of smoke and leaves.

On the evening of the fourth day, Charcoal orbs stared curiously up at the slightly ajar balcony door with the curtain fluttering softly in the wind. Why was it open on a night like this? Surely she knew of the dampened weather as of late…

And then her soft pale face framed with rosette hair appeared, filling his vision. Her emerald eyes were casted out to the world beyond the village walls, as her slender fingers firmly grasped the edge of the door and pushed it closed softly, never noticing his presence as her arms reached up to close the curtains. She turned and all he saw was her retreating frame.

Sakura sat quietly in her bed. Fingers bent, medium length nails clutching the picture of team 7 against her chest. The small ring sang down the hall and through her closed door, reaching her ears and perking up her senses, beckoning to let her unexpected visitor take shelter in her small home from the dreary weather. She got up slowly and made her way from her tucked away room in the back to the front of the house. By the constant ringing filling her house, she concluded it was urgent. She quickened her pace and managed to stub her toe on the corner table leg. Cursing to herself as she reached for the knob.

"Hold on!" she shouted pulling the door open, eyes focused on the thumping toe. She glanced up and her lips separated as if to form an expression of shock.

_**I died the day you disappeared**_

"Sakura." The smooth voice carried through her ears and breathed an aching feeling within her heart, freezing her own voice as it tried to find a way out through her parted lips.

_**So why would you be welcomed here?**_

He looked at her expectantly, as if she was going to suddenly snap back into her fan girl ways and fawn over his sudden appearance at her front door. She frowned slightly.

"_I'm not ready to forgive you!" _her heart screamed

_**Ride the wind that brought you back, away.**_

"Sakura." His voice demanding her to snap out of her daze.

"_**No, you can't come in."**_ She whispered shutting the door on his handsome face.

Sasuke eyes widened slightly by her change of behavior. This certainly wasn't the Sakura he knew. He knocked and stood quietly waiting for her to open the door again.

_**I cannot stop my rebel hands**_

He swore he heard a *thunk* and knocked again.

Sakura had backed up against the wall and sank down it's length until she met the ground. Her searching fingers ran wildly through her pink hair, then fisted into a ball and tried to pull what was tangled, out. Her palms flowed to cover her eyes before she buried her vision in the dark and her head rested on her knees, arms folding over.

_**From pulling out the pots and pans**_

He was persistently knocking on her door. She heard her voice being called but couldn't muster up anything from anywhere to respond. The sudden howl of the wind and the relentless beating of the rain hinted at a worsening storm.

_**I left you in the cold until you shook**_

She heard the slight turn of the knob, and quickly glanced up to only realize she hadn't locked it. His tall soaking wet figure emerged in her living room. Suddenly he was in kneeling in front of her, cupping her heart shaped face in his surprisingly soft palms. She was surprised. The Sasuke she use to know would never initiate physical contact with her. When they were younger he had only expressed annoyance with her.

_**You're gentle now but I recall**_

He pulled her close and his lips swiftly met hers, in a crushing and bruising manner. Hands roaming, and pulling her to him, closing off any escape. Preventing any avoidance.

_**Both tender fire and bitter squall**_

She hesitated, uncertain, weary to allow her eyes to drift close, and then she brought her arms around him, clinging to him as if this was just another dream and she was fighting to keep herself from waking up disappointed again. She pressed her slim figure to his slightly muscular frame.

"_Nothing at all like the Sasuke I use to know"_

_***flashback***_

"_I love you more than anything!"_

"_Even now after all this time, you're still annoying."_

"_Sakura...thank you"_

"_...Sasuke-kun..."_

_***end flashback***_

Sakura tired to shake off the memory of their youth, and that painful day he left Konoha and her behind. She was trying to forget but it still hurt!

_**A history so deep it hurts to look**_

She pulled away slightly and gazed up into his dark eyes. And before she could stop herself tears began to pour uncontrollably from her green pools. Sasuke pulled her in and rested his chin on the top of her head and rubbed her back trying as best as he could to soothe her.

"Sakura, I'm sorry."

_**I fall apart when you are near**_

His apologetic voice broke through the walls she built around herself. She buried herself into him and felt foolish for thinking she was strong enough to just forget about him. One of his hands slipped under her knees and the other supported her back, her own arms snaking around his neck and holding onto him as he headed for her room.

_**Because you're the greatest disaster**_

He carefully sat her down at the head of the bed and turned down the comforter and then proceeded to remove his wet clothing, leaving him in his navy boxers. He glanced at her, almost asking if it was okay that he lay with her. She turned away and removed her water heavy clothing, then laid down staring back at him. He smirked before he rested his head beside hers.

Awhile passed before he uttered the words she'd been dying to hear since she was twelve.

"Aishiteru Sakura" Sasuke said in a hushed voice, thinking she was already asleep.

"I love you too Sasuke" she muttered back surprising the Uchiha.

The rhythm of the storm's presence lured them both into a sleep fast, but not before Sasuke felt Sakura's head on his shoulder and her warm left hand rest softly over his heart.

* * *

hhhmm....i can't decide if i'm done with this or not. i always find ways to improve work AFTER... but i did do this at work while on my 45 min lunch break, so it's not BAD but again there's always room for improvement. ALWAYS.

anyways thanks for reading, if you liked it YAY! if not....well that's cool too.

peace out cub scouts.

~bella


End file.
